And here is the finished product...

You couldn't ask for a better result!  Very pretty job.

Beautiful job, Brian. Couldn't get much more finer than that. You did that rifle justice!

That's a real beauty Brian! 
A family heirloom has been saved for future generations. 
Way to go!! Doesn't get any better than this.
  yours Scott

I think my next gun refinish project will be my Marlin model 43 12ga pump...

64longstep,

My dad had a NOS M1 Carbine back in the early 1960s.  The stock was completely unfinished and very rough; it had not even been sanded.  My dad did a lot of work on the stock and probably removed 2lbs of wood.  He used a boiled linseed oil/varnish mix to finish the stock.  It came out very nice.  It shot well and was a treat to shoot.  We had more fun with that gun at the rifle range.

In the very early part of the Vietnam war, the Cal 30 M1 Carbine was the absolute favorite weapon of all of the "resisters".
Why,,,because it was small and fit them better.
The answer we taught because of the puny size of the bullet and knock-down power,,,, was to shoot the Viet Cong twice!! Always!!